The Bookseller.com

4th July 2009

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John Smith rolls out e-books

23.04.08 Graeme Neill

Academic bookseller John Smith is to roll out its e-book offer to all of its 28 campus stores after a successful trial. The retailer tested the demand for e-books with students from three universities, including Strathcylde University in Glasgow. Twelve titles from five publishers were offered for business, psychology and sociology courses. The titles are DRM protected so students will not be able to copy them for others to use.

Alan Leitch, marketing director at John Smith, said that the retailer was so pleased with the take up of e-books that the entire chain would make them available instore as well as online for the 2008/2009 academic year. "We will be offering more books in more places from more publishers involving more courses," he said. He added that it was too early to discuss how many titles would be made available. "We want to offer the digital option for as many titles as the publishers can agree to deliver to us in time."

He said that the retailer was still experimenting with how the e-books would be sold. Among the offers tested during the trial was a print and e-book bundle for a specific price, and money off one if the other is bought." Take-up of e-books has varied hugely," he said. "In some instances it was as high as an 80% take-up of e-books compared to print, whereas in some stores it was frankly minimal."

John Smith is providing e-books in Ingram Digital's Vitalbook format and Leitch said it would continue to be the retailer's partner for the foreseeable future.

Retail John Smith e-books Graeme Neill digitisation